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The leader of the Canadian Council of Chief Executives is calling for parents to get serious about foreign-language education for their children. Speaking another language -- especially an Asian language -- will be a critical need in the workforce as the country expands trade with China and India, John Manley says.

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While some in Glasgow, Scotland, have raised concerns over a lack of foreign-language teaching, one secondary school is the exception to the rule, catering to students from varied backgrounds and who have an interest in foreign-language instruction. In August, the school plans to begin offering a fourth language -- Russian -- besides French, Spanish and German.

Following research showing that Scotland is behind other nations in linguistics, a new committee will evaluate language instruction in the country's primary schools. Among the committee's goals will be to evaluate the feasibility of a government proposal to begin teaching foreign languages earlier in primary school.

Research suggests that language barriers in U.S. hospitals prevent Spanish-speaking women from receiving proper pain relief during childbirth. The study highlights the communication gap that exists at hospitals and how providing language services can improve health care.

Foreign-language teachers in Santa Barbara, Calif., are building a digital community across five schools to teach Mandarin to dozens of students. Video chats allow students and teachers to interact in their new language no matter where they learn their lessons. The teachers use virtual tours to educate students about important Chinese landmarks and history.

Just one in four elementary schools offered foreign-language classes last year, in part because of NCLB, a trend likely to continue as more programs are cut amid the economic crisis. That's troubling because it could put U.S. children even further behind students in other countries, says Robert Slater, who directs the Defense Department's National Security Education Program.